World Wide Web inventorTim Berners-Lee has called on world
authorities to step up their efforts to fightcybercrime.
Authorities should dedicate the same amount of effort to
fighting cybercrime as conventional crime, Tim Berners-Lee said,
according to The Sunday Telegraph newspaper.
According to IT security experts, cybercrime is now a
profit-driven, multi-billion pound
underground economy.
This industry mirrors the legitimate economy with division of
labour, job specialisation, a global market and an efficient supply
chain.
Berners-Lee said new steps are needed to protect internet users
from malware, and suggested ISPs should cut off users with infected
machines until they are cleaned up
Berners-Lee counts himself as a victim of online crime, having
once purchased goods from a bogus online shopping site.
About a quarter of UK
internet users have fallen prey to phishing scams to steal
personal details and one in six has fallen victim to other types of
online fraud.
The World Wide Web
celebrates 20 years this month. It was in March 1989 that
Berners-Lee unveiled the concept while working at Cern in
Geneva.
World Wide Web creator Sir Tim Berners-Lee fell victim to
online fraud >>